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Wednesday, September 16, 2015

The US wastes 35 million tons of food every year while 1 every 6 Americans is food-insecure.

If you are interested in joining the Brown chapter of one of the greatest collegiate non-profits, develop as well as execute strategies to help businesses reduce food waste and help homeless shelters stay functional, apply to one of the positions listed below. For more information, find us on Facebook or shoot us an email at frnatbrown@gmail.com. We love to hear from you!

We are interested in candidates for these positions:

Representatives: Pickup food donations from Brown eateries and local businesses. See the application at http://goo.gl/forms/Q9gmVFk9gK for more information. Note: returning volunteers from last semester need not fill this out - check your emails!

Supervisors: Maintain contact between the leadership team and representatives. See the application at http://goo.gl/forms/5UO6V7vmmMfor more information.

Public Relations Director: Help us let everyone know about our work! Author our newsletter and create web and social media content. Graphic design skillz an extra plus. Please email nguyen_le@brown.edu with a resume and/or short description of your qualifications to apply. Deadline is Monday, September 28 at 11:59 PM.

Woah. I'd love to say a conscience but I'm sure there's a lot of bad people with some of those out there.

My mother?

What are some things you're thinking about lately?

I've been going to meditation recently where I practice not thinking and I'd say I do a pretty good job.

Off the top of my head though: will I ever make it to bed before Morning Mail - do I want to? Slush. That time Birdman was inside my head too. What inspires me to do good? (still thinkin about that one...) Should I stop changing in front of all of Barbour? How to save the world one bagel at a time.

When I was in middle school I used to do this thing called The Midnight Run. We would pack a couple cars full of food and clothes and deliver them throughout Manhattan late into the night. Those were my first conversations with people who lived day to day on the food we were giving, and I'll never forget it.

I am really looking forward to engaging with the Providence community and building relationships with other people who are interested in food access, and food waste issues.

What inspires you to do good?

I am inspired by people who make the most of their situations. One day I was walking along a city street and saw a homeless man making ash trays out of aluminum cans. They were beautiful and he was giving them away, and accepting donations. It was the most inspirational thing I have ever seen.

What are some things you're thinking about lately?

I have recently been thinking a lot about energy, and the intangible way that positive energy changes the atmosphere of any space.

Last spring I worked on a map of free food in Providence and interviewed a man who was working to create an edible forest on the South Side of Providence. His passion and energy were contagious, and it was really great to learn that we were helping with his mission of food accessibility through our project.

Sunday, September 21, 2014

We are so excited to announce our new volunteer coordinator and director of operations!
Here's a little bit about each of them:

Vicky (Zhu) - Volunteer Coordinator

Class

2016

Spirit vegetable

Carrot

From

Beijing, China

Concentrations

Applied Math- Economics

Favorite activities:

Movies and basketball

What are you looking forward to gaining from the VC position?

Getting to know and working with the awesome FRN volunteers, and being more involved with Providence community.

What inspires you to do good?

Making small positive changes in this big and complicated world fascinates me.

What are some things you're thinking about lately? Thinking about making a short video for FRN, either promotional or for new volunteer training; Looking forward to meeting the new LT and also the 2014 fall volunteers; What the food industry is like here in Providence, can I apply my macroeconomics knowledge to better understand this system?; Whether the FRN could be applied to colleges outside US, such as my hometown—Beijing, which has different food system and eating habits.

How to make good mac-and-cheese; winter schedule back in Beijing; what posters should I get for my dorm decoration.

Visiting McAuley House during lunch time with Shelby and Adalyn from FRN, and talked with the interesting and inspiring people there.

Nguyen - Director of Operations

Class

2016

Spirit vegetable

Broccoli (raw or stir fried with soy sauce)

Where you're from

Danang (a.k.a the Cape cod of Vietnam)

(Possible) concentrations

Chemical Engineering

Favorite activities

Cooking, yoga, tennis, hiking and dancing

What are you looking forward to gaining from the DO position?

Food distrubution and has always been one of the issues I’m most concerned about. Joining the E-Board, I would love to stay updated about the issue as well as learn to take action against it. What I’m most excited about is the future vision of FRN that is to become more publicized and establish more connection with other organizations at Brown and in Providence in general. I look forward to organizing more events, talking to leaders of many groups and diversifying the activities of FRN. I found myself so lucky to be selected in the position, where I have the chance to cultivate good partnership with people and make contribution to Brown campus.

What inspires you to do good?

I want to make the best of my time at Brown. I do think whether your life is meaningful or not can shown through what you have done to the community you live in. Saving food through redistribution doesn’t just give me a better feeling whenever I have my meal in the ratty, but also makes me feel like I have had a productive time here when looking back at my Brown experience in years.

What are some things you're thinking about lately?

Many things. Courses, what to do with my life, ideas for organizations I’m in like FRN and Social Action Haus. But one of the things that concerned me more recently is Ebola, both scientific and political side of it, especially after reading Besse’ “The world yawns as Ebola takes hold of Africa”, which explain why I do support Obama administration’s request of additional $88 million to funding the fight against Ebola. Another thing I have been thinking about is the energy aspect of climate change. Even though I’m sorry that the Western sanction on Russia has been devastating to many people’s life, I did clap secretly when knowing that Exxon Mobil had to wind down its $700 million exploration for oil and gas potential in Arctic Ocean.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

We are looking for engaged and committed students to take action feeding people, not landfills!

FRN recovers excess food from Brown University dining halls and events and distributes recoveries to shelters and meal sites throughout Rhode Island. There are currently 4 different positions open for the coming school year and we encourage you to look at each of the applications, which include a breakdown of responsibilities for each position.
Please e-mail frnatbrown@gmail.com with any questions!

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

We are happy to announce that this semester we recovered a grand total of

7,324.4 pounds!

For the first time, we will be operating for the summer months and recovering from the Ratty, the Blue Room, events on campus and Blue State Coffee and have almost 40 volunteers signed up to participate!

We are also fielding applications for three Leadership Team positions starting Fall 2014. Each of the applications includes a description and breakdown of the position's responsibilities and necessary qualifications. Please contact frnatbrown@gmail.com with any questions or for more information!

Saturday, April 5, 2014

FRN @Brown is proud to announce its newest LT member and future Community Outreach Coordinator-

Kearney M

Here's a little more about her!

Class: 2017

Spirit vegetable: turnip

From: Bucks County, Pennsylvania

Possible concentrations: Public Health

Favorite activities: cooking, being in new places, swimming, sailing on colonial re-enactment ships

What are you looking forward to gaining from the COC position?

Working with and learning from some of the really interesting, hard-working, inspiring community members of Providence who are easy for me to miss when I spend too much time up on college hill

What inspires you to do good?

Watching people who create goodness in unique and creative and brilliant ways.

What are some things you've been thinking about lately?

The merits of interning in New York City versus the merits of waitressing in Provincetown, MA, when spring weather will stay spring weather, how much time I spend on PerezHilton.com, whether the experience of running downtown is worth the run back up.

And regarding FRN's work - US food subsidies, how to change US food subsidies, the cultivation of food cultures and how to shift the US’s, urban agriculture, how to guard against elitism in the food justice movement, how food recovery intersects with health and nutrition